


Trademarks

by CottonCandyWoof



Category: Minecraft (Video Game), Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Angst, George is too, Happy Ending, M/M, dream is so soft for george, dream is whipped, george and dream get giggly, no beta we die like men, sapnap is tired, slow-burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-20
Updated: 2021-01-17
Packaged: 2021-03-09 19:47:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,730
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27641627
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CottonCandyWoof/pseuds/CottonCandyWoof
Summary: Dream is sent a meme. He thinks it's funny, at first, but the longer time goes on, the more he internalizes it and slowly becomes self-conscious. Can Dream deal with the thought that he's in love, or worse, that it isn't reciprocated?
Relationships: Clay | Dream/GeorgeNotFound (Video Blogging RPF)
Kudos: 85





	1. Too Nice

**Author's Note:**

> ant sends this meme:
> 
> https://twitter.com/soft_gogy/status/1329721074884489221?s=19

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dream has a lot of fun talking to George, but he realizes it might not be in the way he previously thought.

The glaring sun coming through Dream's blinds bothers him awake with a groan. The AC holds him hostage inside his bedsheets as the cozy feeling of warmth against the cold room air almost lulls him back to sleep. 

He covers his head and readies himself for sleep once again, but the light of his phone getting a notification makes him give up on the notion. He grabs his phone, still nuzzled in his blankets, and unlocks it. 

It takes his eyes a few seconds to get used to the bright screen, but once he's able to see, Dream swipes down on the notification bar. He eyes the twitter notifications from his multiple accounts and ultimately deletes them all. He then opens Discord and checks on his merch server, smiles for a few seconds, and moves back up to the server with his friends.

They had talked a lot as he slept. His friends have different time zones, so sometimes he'd miss their messages. His sleep schedule is screwed up, though, so it didn't matter most of the time. 

On days like today, though, he had slept wonderfully. He'd been so tired the night before, and finally he was able to get some rest. However, that meant missing a few hundred messages. 

Dream reads some of these messages, but mostly scrolls down. They were talking about random stuff, conversations that had already ended, so he doesn't bother to remember any of them. As he gets to the most recent messages, he notices that Ant sent a meme 10 minutes prior. 

Dream reads through it, and after a few seconds, he snickers. 

_The trademarks??_ _HAHAHAHA,_ Dream texts back. Ant sends three laughing cat emojis in response. 

Dream sets his phone down beside him, feeling the warmth of it on his arm. He yawns and cozies up again, pouting slightly at his bedroom door, which uninvitingly calls him to get out of bed. 

Suddenly there's the ping of a message. 

_ Good morning :],  _ George sent him on Discord. Dream smiles and opens the app, staring at the message for a bit. His thumbs hover over the phone's keyboard. 

_ gm :),  _ he types, but quickly deletes it. It isn't morning for George anymore.  _ Hi George! _ , he types once again, but then he frowns and deletes it. Dream has always found it easy to talk to George, but starting the conversation always made him nervous because, he reasoned, it could make or break his conversations with George throughout the day. 

George was yet to get mad or awkward at Dream for a full day. 

Dream takes a frustrated breath.  _ Hi George! How are you doing?,  _ he adds to the last message and sends. He can see George typing in the chat and warmth envelops him once again. 

_ "Did the AC get lower…?"  _ Dream thinks with a frown, but his eyes find their way back to his screen. 

_ I'm doing good. I was waiting for you to wake up :],  _ Dream stifles a gasp and bites his lip, hiding back the smile that is forming in his face. Why does it affect him so much? It's George. They speak every day. Another message pops in. 

_ I had a video idea I wanted to share but you were asleep,  _ George continues. 

_ Oh my God. I'm sorry,  _ Dream sends without even thinking about it. Fuck, why did he send that? Is there any reason he's apologizing? He was just sleeping. 

_ It's okay!! You're here now :] Can I call?,  _ George says. 

_ Here? Or in the server?,  _ Dream asks. 

_ Well, I wanted to tell you…,  _ A blush appears in Dream's cheeks as a shy smile starts to show itself. Just him? George wanted to tell him, alone?

"O-oh…" Dream lets out of his mouth. His fingers hover over the keyboard in search of a response. 

_ Sure!,  _ he sends simply and waits a few nervous seconds. Discord's ringtone startles him and he fumbles a little, feeling annoyed at his own insecurity. It's. Just. George. He answers the call. 

"Dream!" George greets excitedly. 

"Hi George," Dream says, his voice sleepy and slightly raspier than usual. 

George pauses for a second.

"So I wanted to tell you about this new plugin I'm coding. I got the idea from one of the comments…" George starts to speak and Dream immediately gets engrossed in his voice, his accent, the way his tone gets higher when he's excited. He cannot help but smile while listening. 

Well, "listening" is relative. Dream isn't really listening. He's too sleepy and hungry to listen, and George's voice is like a soothing lullaby, with its excitement and softness. He almost hums in unison. 

"Dream?" George says, worry shrouding his voice all of a sudden. Dream snaps out.

"Hm?" He responds. 

"Are you listening?" Dream can tell George is holding a disappointed sigh and his heart sinks. 

"I-I'm sorry," he says. "I'm just a little tired… and I haven't eaten anything yet…" He excuses himself as George groans softly. "Are you angry?" Dream's voice is almost pleading. George stays quiet for a moment and then sighs. 

"No…" He says. "Why don't you order something?" He adds helpfully. Dream yawns and nods to himself. 

"Actually, you're right," Dream smiles, and though George can't see it, he giggles in time with it. This stuff always makes Dream feel closer to George, in a way. His stomach flutters in response to George's reaction. "Really, sorry for not listening. This early, your voice is really soothing," Dream continues, not really thinking his words through. He freezes. 

"H-huh?" George is in slight shock, Dream can tell by his voice. He wants to turn back, delete those words, but George has already heard them. George speaks once again. "You think so?" His voice returns to its former softness. 

"I… I do, actually…" There's no turning back now, Dream guesses.

There's a silence between them. It doesn't feel uncomfortable, but it's too long for Dream's liking. Did he make George uncomfortable? He really hopes not, but he's scared. 

"Maybe if I was louder you'd pay attention to me, wouldn't you?" George says. Dream chokes a gasp.

"What?" Dream's mouth is hanging open. 

"Wait—" George looks back into what he's just said. "I didn't mean it like that—" Dream can almost see George's blush on his face. He starts laughing and George groans softly in embarrassment. 

"You didn't just say that," Dream wheezes, finally waking up fully. 

"I'm gonna hang up," George's voice is small now. 

"No no no… come on, George…" Dream can't stop laughing. 

"That sounded so wrong, oh my God…" George's voice is shy and shameful, but soon he's joining Dream on the laughter and their voices are blending in unison like a wonderful melody. 

Once the laughter dies out, Dream goes out of the Discord app, but doesn't hang up yet. 

"I'm gonna order some food," he declares. 

"What are you getting?" George asks gleefully. 

"Mmm… is it too early for Taco Bell?" Dream asks, and George laughs. 

"Not if you want it enough," George responds. 

"Taco Bell it is," Dream says decidedly, and George huffs. "What?"

"I wasted my time explaining the plugin to you," George is trying to make Dream feel guilty. Dream knows this, George does it all the time. However, there's a thing not many people know: it always works. It's just, sometimes he lets it consume him, like now, and some others he has backup and he doesn't let himself be guilt tripped, especially not as a joke. 

"George…" Dream's pleading voice is back. "Do you want me to help you with it? Is it done?" he asks sympathetically. "I'm sorry, George. You don't deserve to be ignored," Dream says genuinely.

George pauses. 

"Don't say that," George whines. Now it's time for Dream to giggle. 

"Why? I mean it," Dream's voice is filled with honey, now so extremely sweet. "You deserve to be paid attention to, 100% of the time," a soft laugh comes out of his mouth accidentally. 

"Dream…" George lets out bashfully. "Stop playing…" Had he gone too far? Is another apology in order?

"George," Dream's voice gets serious all of a sudden. "I'm not," he frowns to himself.  _ How can I make him believe I'm not playing around? _ Dream thinks, and suddenly he realizes. 

Why is he telling George all these things? He doesn't need to convince George of anything. He could just play all of this off as a joke. Why did the conversation go the way it had gone? He feels embarrassed now. 

Is he being too nice?

Suddenly he hears a knock on his front door. 

"Oh?" Dream says out loud. 

"What?" George asks between curious and annoyed. 

"I think my food is here…" He gets out of bed cautiously. 

"Well, that was quick," George sounds relieved.

"Yeah!" Dream's smile comes back. 

He gets out of bed with his phone in his hand and feels the cold chill of his room envelop him. He grabs one of his blankets and covers himself up with it. 

"It's so fucking cold. What?" Dream says with small surprise. "I just put a blanket on." 

"You might catch a cold," George jokes around. 

"From my own house?" Dream laughs. 

"Who knows?" George follows along.

"I know," Dream laughs loudly as he walks towards his front door. "Hold on," he tells George.

Dream thanks the delivery guy and grabs his food, now directing himself to his couch. Once settled down, he places down the bag, and he notices something. George isn't muted. 

He can hear George singing something. He can't quite place the tune, but it's satisfying to hear. He stays quiet for a little more while he listens to George hum. 

"...George?" Dream says quietly. 

"You're back!" George says, with slight surprise in his tone. 

"What were you singing?" Dream asks curiously.

"W-wait. You heard that?" Dream can tell George is once again embarrassed. 

"You're so cute," Dream says and laughs warmly. When George doesn't respond, Dream once again notices what he's said.  _ Shit, _ he thinks. Why isn't he able to control himself today?

"Dream, you're too nice today," George says, his tone radiating suspicion. "What happened?" That question takes Dream by surprise. 

"W-what? Nothing happened," he says genuinely, but he can't help but think the question over. "I'm just nice," he continues in a sweeter tone, almost teasingly. 

"Yeah, sure," George says sarcastically. 

"What? You don't think I'm nice?" Dream gasps in fake offense, stifling a giggle. 

"No. You're mean," George replies, and Dream can just tell that he's also trying his best not to laugh. 

Dream loves moments like these. Talking to George, just the two of them, teasing each other and laughing like old friends. He loves to hear George laugh. It is always filled with warmth, and the sound of it could brighten up anybody's day in mere seconds. It brightens Dream's day, often. Dream feels like a simple smile from George can lighten up a room, even if it's through a computer screen. He knows the fans feel that way, and secretly, in his heart, he feels it too. It's too difficult not to. 

"You want me to be mean? Then I'll be mean," Dream follows up daringly. George erupts in laughter. 

"No no no no!" George says, trying to hold back his laughter. Dream is satisfied with the result, and he's more than glad that he wasn't pushed to say something he'd regret. 

"George, your laugh is making  **me** laugh!" Dream announces, also holding back his own laugh, while finally opening the Taco Bell bag. George's laugh slowly dies out when he hears the crunching of the bag. 

"Food pic, food pic," George cheers, making Dream, who has stopped laughing, giggle again. 

"Food pic?" Dream asks.

"Food pic!" George reassures. 

"Alright," Dream opens Snapchat and starts to unwrap one of his tacos. He delicately holds it in one hand while taking a picture with the other, and sends it. 

"Yum," George says to the phone. Dream takes a bite out of it and a loud crunch goes through his phone. George laughs. 

"I think I'm gonna hang up while I eat… or at least mute," Dream announces. 

"Why?" George asks.

"Why? I…" Dream pauses. "Because I don't want you to hear me eating!" He feels dumb for laughing again, but he does. 

"Mmm…" George lets out. "I'm gonna stream then," he says. "Join when you finish eating."

Dream is startled for a moment. 

"What makes you think I want to join your stream?" Dream teases. Of course he does, but he wants to see George's reaction. 

"Well, I want you to join," is that decisiveness in George's voice? It can't be. Why would it sound like that now? Was it an order that Dream had taken as a joke?

"You want me to join…?" Dream asks. 

"Yes, you idiot. I just said that," despite the lack of a camera, Dream can see George do an eye roll. "Well, bye! See you there!" George finalizes, and hangs up. Dream is still holding his phone with Discord open.

"O-okay George… I will," he says, to nobody. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is my first dnf fic,, i hope you guys enjoy the chapter. i'll try to make the following ones longer! i mean if anyone's reading this...


	2. Attention

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dream is overthinking things, but not enough to think twice when he's actually talking to George.

Dream sits alone in his couch now, taco in hand and Patches staring at him. 

Patches!

"Hi baby," he smiles at her. Fuck, he forgot to feed her. Dream knows if she had eyebrows, she'd be raising an accusative eyebrow at him. He puts his food down and gets up, whisking her up in his arms. "Sorry. No tacos for you today," or ever, for that matter. 

He works his way to the kitchen and reaches for a bag in a high cabinet with a latch on it. Patches may be cute, but she's extremely crafty, and the bag is easy to turn over. She had done it way more times Dream would like to admit before he installed that latch. He’s having to think about an upgrade, though, because Patches is learning how to open it.

Dream pours some food on her bowl and refills her water, then proceeds to pet her. She purrs quietly but goes to her food in a few seconds, allowing Dream to go to his own.

As he gets to the couch, he opens twitch and props his phone sideways, pressing George’s stream. He watches the phone as he eats his taco.

_ “Gaby thanks for the dono! ‘If you could and wanted to date any of your Youtube friends, who would it be?”  _ George giggles after saying that sentence, and Dream gives a nervous bite to his taco.  _ “Mmm… I don’t know, actually. I mean, who has the personality I’d like most in a relationship?”  _ There is a pause there, and George gives a barely visible smirk as his eyes flash.  _ “...I’m not giving you guys my type!” _ It was true. George had held himself from telling anybody his type, even his friends. It was a little curious why he didn’t… But nobody had asked his type this time, so Dream giggles when George brings it up and digs his own grave. He watches as George continues tasks in the game awkwardly and quietly, and another donation pops up. George reads it mindlessly.  _ “TinyDinosaur thank you for the dono! What’s your type... “ _ And he stops reading, looking at the screen with a bashful smile while giggling.  _ “Guys come on. I already said I wouldn’t give you my type...”  _ Dream can’t help himself, and he's laughing now. Not at him, but he's feeling extremely warm inside hearing George be so bashful and giggly. I mean, who wouldn’t, right? 

Dream finishes part of his food up, cleans his hands slightly, and picks up his phone. He turns it and starts reading the chat. He lets out a loud cackle as he sees the chat split in two: the people still asking George for his type, and the people defending George and telling the others to shut up about it. They always do this, without fail, when a question like that pops up. Dream always ignores both sides, knowing that siding with either would make the other side upset, and he doesn’t want to do that to any of his fans. George finds it harder to ignore the chat.

Dream lies down on his couch with his phone in hand and grabs a final taco from the bag, taking a bite. He watches George start to get impatient. He’s trying to beat the game on his own again, and he always gets frustrated by doing this. Dream knows that eventually… yup, there it is. Chat starts saying “call Dream” or “ask Dream for help”. So far it isn’t many people, but it’s only a matter of time until someone donates it and George notices. Dream doesn’t want to join yet. He wants to keep looking at George’s face for a little while.

Some people have reacted by saying things like “he’s doing great! Stop calling Dream!” until two mobs have started in the chat. Dream is laughing reading the comments they’re making. 

His eyes wander to George again as George’s wander to the chat, and a smile forms in his face. Dream smiles at him and George looks at the camera right then, giving Dream chills. 

_ “Guys, I already called Dream. He’s coming in a little while. I actually hope he isn’t watching right now, because if so I’m gonna be mad.”  _ Dream bites his lip. The chat is going crazy and most of it is now calling Dream, as they are assuming he’s watching. Well, he is, and he’s not coming!

Well, that’s what he thinks, until he finds himself throwing away the bags and walking to his room.

He can still hear the soft crunching of Patches eating her food.

Dream settles in his chair and turns on his computer. He patiently waits for it to load as George’s stream still plays on his phone.

He tunes out the stream for a second as he looks at, or more like through, his computer. He starts thinking about George, and about himself, and everything they’ve said today. He starts thinking about all the nervousness he’s been holding onto and the bold comments George has made. He holds his left arm tightly and bites his lip as his computer boots up.

He wants to talk to George, that isn’t even a question. But why is he so eager to? George is his best friend, yes, but isn’t this a bit much? It isn’t like George isn’t reciprocating either, so Dream is just anxious and confused. His head is racing for no reason. 

Why is he even thinking about this, unprompted?

He flinches when he hears George scream and looks at his phone again, looking at George pitifully laughing after a failed Nether attempt. Dream feels a little better.

He unlocks his computer and, once in his desktop, quickly opens TeamSpeak and the Minecraft launcher. Dream hears the familiar “user joined your channel” message and then it resonates inside the stream, so he lowers all the volume of it. He props his phone up sideways so he can still see George’s face.

“Dream!” George greets him excitedly. “Look guys! Dream is here! Say hi Dream.” 

Dream’s cheeks turn a shade of pink. He isn’t ashamed per se, but George’s voice, especially in that higher, excited pitch, makes him warm inside again. 

Dream starts to realize that maybe it isn’t the air conditioning that’s making him feel warm.

“Hi!” Dream says, his cheeks nagging at him with a slight tickle. “Are you trying to beat the game?” He pretends he hasn’t been watching the stream for the past few minutes.

“Yeah. No luck though. They were calling for you to help me… they think you’re my landline.” George once again giggles, but this time it’s at  _ him _ . Dream can’t help a proud smile showing on his face, both for the statement and the reaction.

“Come on guys. George can do it…” Dream says, but the teasing tone holds at the tip of his tongue. “Do you want me to help you, though?” his voice burns soft, like a light flame threatening to become bigger and consume everything. A flame that is harmless now, but could become a problem later. "...Maybe I AM your landline. How about that?" A smirk shows up on Dream's face, and while he knows nobody can see it, he knows George can tell it’s there.

“You are not my landline!” George cannot help the giggles that are escaping his mouth, and Dream is leaning into his desk now. He lets out a low “mm…”, and he feigns thoughtfulness for a second before speaking.

“Oh come on,” he replies. George stays quiet for a second. 

“...You said the thing,” George scoffs. 

Dream hadn’t noticed, but now he's rolling his eyes about it.

“Do you want me to help you?” He asks George. George is giggling, but Dream can’t tell if he's making fun of him or if he's nervous. He feels the latter might just be himself projecting on how he’d like George to react, so he ignores the topic. 

Dream usually gets pestered about the “oh come on.” He feels some of his stans think it’s hot and he doesn’t mind joking with them about it, but when George mentions it, he gets nervous and he never knows how to respond. Fans probably think he's weird for it, but he hopes they all forget about it soon. George interrupts his thoughts.

“Sure…” He sounds embarrassed. 

“What’s wrong?” Dream’s voice comes out slightly more worried than he wanted it to. He curses himself. 

“Nothing! Nothing… it’s just…” George growls and Dream can see him slightly pouting in the stream, which is still playing in his phone. “Now they’re all going on in the chat about how I can’t beat the game without you,” Dream stares silently for a second.

“What?” Dream says and laughter starts building up in him, and soon he's laughing in the middle of the stream as George’s face reddens slightly. “God, George.”

“Stop laughing!” George interrupts, and Dream can tell he isn’t really angry. “I can beat the game without you, watch!” He says as he opens up a new world. 

George gets really competitive about these things, and Dream knows that if the chat hadn’t embarrassed George for feeling like he needed help, they would be playing together in an effort to beat the game right now. He's glad he gets to see George like this, but is slightly sad that they don’t get to share a moment.

Dream and George often played Minecraft with each other, both on stream and off stream. They’d concentrate on each other and would forget the chat was even there, and sometimes, in a slightly more rude manner, they’d forget their friends were on call. One could argue they’d think the friend had left the chat, but even without any notification, Dream and George go on and talk to each other like the world around them doesn’t exist. 

Every time Dream notices this to happen, he reminds George to read his donations. He wouldn’t notice before almost at all, but since his recommended tab on youtube gave him a compilation of George and him making everyone third wheel, he's been slightly more self-conscious about it. He doesn’t think George has noticed yet, but he believes George is simply very comfortable talking to him.

“You have donos, George,” Dream reminds calmly, trying to pass it off naturally when a conversation ends. George seems surprised, as if he's momentarily forgotten how twitch streaming works. 

“Oh. You’re right,” He says, and Dream raises an eyebrow to himself in response.

“Why wouldn’t you have?” Dream lets out a soft giggle. George bites his lip, and when Dream sees it he sucks in a breath.

“I don’t know, I guess I just forgot,” George replies simply and shrugs it off. He opens his mouth to read a donation, his character still on the screen, when Dream interrupts again.

“Am I distracting you?” He says playfully. George rolls his eyes.

“Are you going to let me read these donations or not?” George’s tone shows annoyance now, but Dream wants to push a little more. 

Now, Dream's not really thinking. If he was, he’d have more self-control than he’s showing at the moment. He reminded George of the donations in a ditch effort to distract the stream, but George’s word-choice and face just distracted Dream from the matter at hand.   
  
“Maybe… answer me something first, though,” Dream builds up his tone and George stares in expectation. He has George wrapped around his finger. “Am I distracting you…? Do I keep your attention?” 

George stays quiet for a second, holding his breath. His face has changed into a more serious demeanor that has left the chat speechless. Dream is watching the chat’s movements from the corner of his eye, and not only is it moving slower, the only things coming through are confusion. George isn’t even getting donations currently. 

This feels more personal than what Dream wanted to make of the situation. This was just supposed to be some light teasing, but now he feels the consequences of his fire burning around his room and making his chest feel hot. 

“You own it,” George lets out. This isn’t succeeded by any laughter or smile, keeping the tension built up in the air. The chat has now stopped in its entirety. They are speechless.

And Dream is too.

“I think I should end the stream,” George says in a lighter tone, a chuckle coming out of his mouth delicately. Dream is staring at his screen.

"Wait. What?" Dream swallows in shock. "I just came in!" He keeps trying to make his tone playful and light, and so far he's not sure if he's succeeded. "Come on, George," this comes out in a borderline begging tone.

That was a thing that George did, too, sometimes. When he felt there was no way he could dispel the awkwardness of a situation, or the awkwardness within himself, he would bid the stream goodbye. Right now, and as usual, people were begging for him to stay. They are acting as if the situation never happened because they want more of George, and to be fair, Dream does too.

"You haven't even beaten the game!" Dream encourages, George's words still burning deep inside of him. 

George looks thoughtful. 

"I don't think I'm gonna beat it," he says. Dream over-exaggeratedly gasps. 

"How dare you?" Dream acts offended, which immediately brings a smile to George's face. He's trying to fight it out. He looks to the side, as if the chat was a friend to say "Do you see this?" to. "You're a great minecraft player, George. and I say you're beating it today!" Dream says confidently. Then his voice lowers. "Unless you end the stream…" 

George frowns and rolls his eyes, and Dream can tell his hands have come back to the mouse. 

"Okay," he says finally. 

"Yeah!" Dream claps his hands together.

"But only if you come in here and beat it with me," George follows up. 

"Deal!" Dream responds, a little quicker that he would've wanted. 

They play for a while, trying to beat the game in one world George had chosen. It isn't the best world, and it takes them a while, but after a full hour and a half of jokes and petty arguing, they finally manage to beat the game. 

"You did it, George!" Dream says, a wide smile sprawling across his face. 

" **We** did it," George corrects. 

"Yeah yeah," Dream dismisses while his character jumps around George's. 

George's character runs away and Dream goes behind him for a bit as they talk about how the run had gone. After a bit of talking, George stretches. 

"I think I'm gonna end the stream now. Bye guys!" He says. 

Dream pouts to himself. 

"So soon?" Dream asks. 

"I'm a little tired and I want to eat something. I think Tommy is streaming… we can go to his stream later if he's still on," George offers, and Dream opens his mouth for a second, but then closes it not finding a proper response. "Bye guys, bye! Let's see… oh yeah, Tommy is streaming. Say hello to him guys!" George finalizes before raiding Tommy's stream. 

Dream can tell George is just forcing him to stay around now. And he, honestly, would never mind it. 

He likes to be around George. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you for reading! i have to work in around 4 hours and instead i was finishing this chapter. im sorry if there's any mistakes. hope you've enjoyed!


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